Exercise 8

Mendelian Traits
The kind of offsprings that will be produced by sexually reproducing organisms is a product of a non-
selective (random) union of the million spermatozoa released by the male organism and one of the many
ova produced by the female. Thus, the prediction of genetic results is laden with uncertainties, events over
which one has very little or no control. Such events are commonly referred to as chance events. However,
such uncertainties can be studied and reduced to mathematical statements of predictions of what may be
expected. Such statements are called probabilities, a measurement or quantification of uncertainty.
The term probability is briefly defined as the chance that an event will occur. In modern science,
the validity of a theory or hypothesis is based on the probability that the phenomenon will occur not by
chance but at sufficiently high and predictable frequency.
Probability may be expressed as a fraction whose denominator is the total number of equally likely
events possible in the situation under discussion and whose numerator is the number of those that constitute
the event whose likelihood is in question. For example, when a coin is flipped, there are only 2 possible
events, head or tail, thus the probability of getting a head, one of the events, is ½. Similarly the probability
of the other event, tail, is also ½. The probability of an event is a positive number between 0 and 1 with 1
representing certainty of success and 0 a certainty of failure. The sum of probabilities of all events is 1.
Thus if the probability of getting a head is ½ then the probability of getting the other remaining event, tail,
may be obtained from 1-1/2=1/2. In such case, the tail is the complementary event of head.

Activity 1: Occurrence of Heads and Tails in Tossing Coins

1.A. Using a 1-Peso coin, work in teams or pairs with one student throwing the coin and the other recording
the results as indicated in Table 1. Let one student throw 10 times and other, another 10 times, and keep on
alternating till a total of 100 throws have been done.
Table 1. Tally Sheet for Single Toss Coin (Per Group)

Number of Frequency of:

Ratio
Throws Heads Tails
1st 10
2nd 10
3rd 10
4th 10
5th 10
6th 10
7th 10
8th 10
9th 10
10th of 10
 In every group of 10 throws did you always get exactly ½ heads and ½ tails?
Did you ever get exactly ½ heads and ½ tails?
Is the total for 100 throws closer to ½ heads and ½ tails than that for 10 throws?
Another rule of probability is concerned with the occurrence of two independent events together.
For instance, what is the chance that two heads will occur in two coin tosses? In as much as the chance of
a head in the first toss is ½ and the chance of a head in the second toss is also ½, the chance of two heads
is ½ x ½ = ¼. The probability of a combination of independent events is equal to the product of their
respective probabilities (Product Rule). Thus the probability of both coins turning up heads is equal to
(H)1/2 (H)1/2 = (HH)1/4.
This is embodied in the rule that the chance of independent events happening together is equal to
the product of the chances when each occur separately.
1.B. Each team should now throw two coins at the same time. To distinguish one coin from the other, mark
one of them with a pentel pen or ink spot and call it coin II. As in the previous exercise, let one student in
each team throw two coins and the other serve as recorder. Make a total of 40 throws. Record your results
in Table 2.
Table 2. Tally Sheet for Two Toss Coin (Per Group)

Number Number of Getting:

Probability
of Throws Two Heads Two Tails Head and Tail
1st 10
2nd 10
3rd 10
4th 10

In the head-tail combination, there are 2 possible ways by which this can be obtained. The head may
be contributed by coin I and the tail by coin II or coin I may contribute the tail and coin II the head. If the
source of head and tail is not considered and the concern is simply a combination of one head and one tail,
then the combinations can be combined HT(1/4) + TH(1/4) = ½. This follows the Sum Rule of Probability
which states that if an event has several alternative forms and attainment of any alternative is considered
attainment of the desired event; the probability of success in this case is the sum of the probabilities of the
alternative forms. Another way of looking at it is if 2 coins are tossed and coin I showed head and coin II
tail, then the other combinations coin I showing tail and coin II head for one head and tail is not possible.
Such events are said to be mutually exclusive events. This kind of events follow the sum rule – i.e.
probability of mutually exclusive events considered together is equal to the sum of their individual
probabilities.
Note that combinations with two coins, TT + 2 TH + HH or T 2 + 2 TH + H2 are the terms of the
expansion of the binomial (T+H)2.
In the case of chromosome segregation, there are two possibilities, either paternal or maternal. What
is the probability of getting a paternal chromosome or a maternal chromosome? Similarly, in heterozygous
conditions, what is the probability of getting A or a? What is the similarity of this condition to the throwing
of coins? In homozygous conditions (AA) what is the probability of getting A? of getting a?
 The observable trait of an organism is called its phenotype while the kinds of genes it possesses is
its genotype. Individuals that are homozygotes or pure breed produce only one kind of offspring as to the
trait examined. Why? Heterozygotes are hybrid and the trait expressed phenotypically among
heterozygotes is called the dominant trait (A) while the one not expressed is the recessive trait (a) thus,
for recessive traits, to be expressed, they must be in the homozygous state (aa) while individuals with
dominant traits may be homozygotes (AA) or heterozygotes (Aa).

Activity 2. Boy or Girl?

Most sexual organisms are either male or female though some are hermaphroditic. In human beings
and Drosophila (fruitfly), the sex of an individual is determined by the kind of sex chromosomes they
possess. Males have two types of chromosomes, a big chromosome X and a small chromosome Y while
females have only one kind, X. The X and Y chromosomes segregate during the formation of mature
spermatozoa (sprematogenesis) so that a mature sperm contains only either X or Y. What is the probability
of getting an X-bearing sperm? A Y-bearing sperm? How many kinds of ova as to the kind of sex
chromosome present can be produced? Fertilization of ova by sperm is a random process and the laws of
probabilities can be applied. Determine the probability of getting a boy or girl.

2.A. Ask each student to give the number of brothers and sisters in the family. Obtain the total males and
females for all the families of all members of the class. In a tabular form group the families as to size and
distribution of children as to sex. How do the observed ratios compare with the expected values? To get the
expected values, use the terms of the expansion of the binomial (b+g) n where n is the number of children,
b, the probability of getting a girl.
2.B. In a family of 5 children, what is the probability of it being composed of three boys and two girls?
Four girls and one boy? Of having at least one boy? What is the explanation for some families with children
being composed entirely of boys or entirely of girls?

Activity 3. Genetic Problems

3.A. In corn, resistance to a certain fungus is governed by a recessive gene r, while susceptibility is
controlled by its dominant allele R. If a plant resistant to the disease is pollinated by a homozygous
susceptible plant, give the genotypes of the following:
a. pistillate parent
b. staminate parent

3.B. In sweet potatoes, white root is dominant over yellow root. If a plant bearing heterozygous white root
is self-fertilized, what will be the phenotypic and genotypic ratios of the offspring?
If two gene pairs A and a and B and b are assorting independently with A dominant to a and B dominant to
b, what is the probability of obtaining:
a. an AB gamete from an AaBb individuals?
b. an AABB zygote from an AaBb x AaBb cross?
c. an aaBb offspring from an AaBb x aabb cross?

3.C. List down all the possible types of gametes produced by the following individuals with genotypes:
a. GGHhIi
b. NnOoPPQq
c. EeFFdd